Mr. Speaker, Don Chapman sent me an email, and he is fairly well recognized as someone who understands and has an appreciation for lost Canadians. In it, he stated that a 1997 Supreme Court decision, Benner v. Canada (Secretary of State), declared background checks for lost Canadians to be unconstitutional. A report also came out in December 2007, when Stephen Harper was the prime minister and the Conservatives were in power, that reinforced this Supreme Court statement.
The Conservatives have changed their position on individuals being entitled to citizenship as a birthright. I am wondering if the member can explain why they have changed their position.